Frank McCourt's brother: Limerick author would not want a statue
MALACHY McCourt, brother of the late Angela's Ashes author Frank, has appealed to Limerick City Council not to erect a statue of his brother in the city.
Instead, Mr McCourt said his brother would have preferred that any money spent in his memory be directed towards a scholarship for a pupil from one of Limerick's disadvantaged estates.
Mr McCourt said he got "a fit laughing" when he heard of plans to erect a statue of his brother on Bedford Row - the same street where a statue of the actor Richard Harris, whom Frank famously had a fight with in a New York bar.
"It is a meaningless, expensive kind of thing," he said of the proposed statue or bust of his Pulitzer Prize winning brother.
"What he would have wanted would be a scholarship for a poor kid, named after him. It would mean something if you educated someone in the spirit of Frank McCourt. But please, no statues," said Mr McCourt, who added that he discussed the matter with Frank's widow, Ellen.
Over 200 people attended what was intended to be a family gathering in memory of Frank McCourt in Rosie O'Grady's bar, 52nd street and 7th Avenue, New York, last week.
Among those in attendance was former President of the United States, Bill Clinton, who shared a friendship with Frank McCourt. Both celebrated their birthday's on August 19, and would exchange cards each year.
"He asked courteously if he could come and say a few words. He was very sensitive, very respectful and very funny. It was a grand, lovely evening. There were a lot of pictures of Frank passed about. He probably would have said 'God, will ye leave me alone.' There was a lot of laughter and tears."
A public celebration of Frank McCourt will be held on October 6 in Symphony Space, Broadway, New York, which thousands of people are expected to attend.
Some of his ashes will be buried near his home in Roxbury, Connecticut, as well as at Leamy's building on Hartstonge Street, the author's national school. Ellen Frey, whom he married in August 1994, has also indicated that she would like to scatter some of his ashes near a castle in Co Limerick, which he loved to visit.
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Tuesday 22 May 2012
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